WASHINGTON, December 8, 2004 – A seven-part investigative report that revealed the widespread violence directed at Peace Corps volunteers won the 2004 ICIJ Award for Outstanding International Investigative Reporting.

For their Dayton Daily News series, "Casualties of Peace," Russell Carollo and Mei-Ling Hopgood traveled around the world, interviewing more than 500 people in 11 countries, to detail the danger of sending volunteers to some of the most dangerous corners of the world. After filing more than 75 Freedom of Information Act requests, the Dayton Daily News ultimately sued the Peace Corps in federal court to free public records that document assaults against volunteers. The agency had never before released its database on assaults, preventing closer scrutiny into the incidents and allowing the agency to hide the real dangers its volunteers often face.

Following the publication of the series, the Peace Corps redesigned its Web site to include extensive information on safety and security. Hearings were also held in both houses of the U.S. Congress; legislation was introduced to establish a Peace Corps ombudsman to investigate health and safety complaints and asking the agency to detail its safety procedures.

A five-judge panel of international journalists awarded Carollo and Hopgood the first-place prize of $20,000 and said their winning entry "proves that world-class investigative journalism isn't the purview of just the national dailies or magazines with deep pockets. Carollo and Hopgood have demonstrated that size need not determine ambition."

"By taking on an institution as important, wide-ranging and influential as the Peace Corps, the team was able to have an immediate impact – and, most likely, save lives in the years ahead."

The judges also selected five entries from three countries to receive the $1,000 finalist award. The finalists for the seventh annual ICIJ award, in alphabetical order, are:

* Steve Bradshaw of the British Broadcasting Corporation, for his documentary "Sex and the Holy City," a six-month investigation into the Pope's record on reproductive and sexual health. Spanning four continents, the investigation discovered that, contrary to mainstream scientific opinion, the Church is claiming that condoms have microscopic holes in them which allow the HIV virus through, a view the World Health Organization calls "dangerous."

* Jean-Philippe Ceppi and Michel Heiniger of Television Suisse Romande for "Warriors for Hire." The Swiss journalists examined the increasing role that private military companies play in war zones around the globe, including Iraq. The companies, who often provide services normally carried out by a national military force, offer specialized skills in high-tech warfare, including communications and signals intelligence and aerial surveillance, as well as pilots, logistical support, battlefield planning and training. * Bob Drogin, Jeffrey Fleishman and Greg Miller of the Los Angeles Times for "The Weapons Files." The three reporters were the first to document how Saddam Hussein had given up his weapons of mass destruction in the 1990s, how a Syrian company tied to the ruling regime had secretly helped funnel arms to Iraq before the war, and how a key claim of U.S. intelligence came from a now-discredited Iraqi defector code-named Curveball.

* Alessandra Galloni and David Reilly of The Wall Street Journal for "The Fall of Parmalat," an investigation into collapse of the giant Italian dairy company, Parmalat SpA. Galloni and Reilly not only exposed the business shenanigans, but also brought to life the extraordinary human drama behind the Parmalat saga. The in-depth articles were used by both Italian and international investigators probing the fall of the dairy giant.

* Barton Gellman of The Washington Post for his reporting on "Iraq's Arsenal was Only on Paper," which revealed that Iraq's government had lied about its aims, and concealed early steps of potential use for illegal arms. Still, two principal prewar assertions were false: Iraq had no hidden arsenal of old weapons and no advanced programs for new ones. Gellman was among the first to disclose the collapse of the weapons search in Iraq and has provided a compelling narrative of it.

The ICIJ Award for Outstanding International Investigative Reporting is unique among journalism awards worldwide in that it was created specifically to honor international investigative reporting. Presented by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, a project of the Center for Public Integrity, the annual award is made possible by a grant from The John and Florence Newman Foundation of San Antonio, Texas.

The competition for the 2004 award attracted 52 entries from 22 countries, involving reporting in 74 countries. Any professional journalist or team of journalists of any nationality working in print, broadcast or online media may apply for the award. In keeping with the transnational emphasis of the ICIJ award, eligible investigations must involve reporting in at least two countries. For more details on this year's ICIJ award winner and finalists, as well as information on how to apply for the 2005 award, please visit the ICIJ section of our Web site at www.publicintegrity.org.

The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative research organization in Washington, D.C., created ICIJ in 1997 to extend globally the Center's style of "watchdog journalism" in the public interest. The ICIJ network of more than 90 journalist-members in over 45 countries investigates issues that transcend national borders, and its award-winning reports can be read on the Center's Web site.

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Contacts: Ann Pincus or Nathan Kommers at The Center for Public Integrity, 202-466-1300.

When this story was posted in December 2004, this was on the front page of PCOL:

Is Gaddi Leaving? Rumors are swirling that Peace Corps Director Vasquez may be leaving the administration. We think Director Vasquez has been doing a good job and if he decides to stay to the end of the administration, he could possibly have the same sort of impact as a Loret Ruppe Miller. If Vasquez has decided to leave, then Bob Taft, Peter McPherson, Chris Shays, or Jody Olsen would be good candidates to run the agency. Latest: For the record, Peace Corps has no comment on the rumors.

The Birth of the Peace CorpsUMBC's Shriver Center and the Maryland Returned Volunteers hosted Scott Stossel, biographer of Sargent Shriver, who spoke on the Birth of the Peace Corps. This is the second annual Peace Corps History series - last year's speaker was Peace Corps Director Jack Vaughn.

Charges possible in 1976 PCV slayingCongressman Norm Dicks has asked the U.S. attorney in Seattle to consider pursuing charges against Dennis Priven, the man accused of killing Peace Corps Volunteer Deborah Gardner on the South Pacific island of Tonga 28 years ago. Background on this story here and here.

Kerry reaches out to Returned VolunteersThe Kerry campaign wants the RPCV vote. Read our interview with Dave Magnani, Massachusetts State Senator and Founder of "RPCVs for Kerry," and his answers to our questions about Kerry's plan to triple the size of the Peace Corps, should the next PC Director be an RPCV, and Safety and Security issues. Then read the "RPCVs for Kerry" statement of support and statements by Dr. Robert Pastor, Ambassador Parker Borg, and Paul Oostburg Sanz made at the "RPCVs for Kerry" Press Conference.

RPCV Carl Pope says the key to winning this election is not swaying undecided voters, but persuading those already willing to vote for your candidate to actually go to the polls.

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Story Source: Public Integrity

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